Thesis

Russia's dealing with western Europe and the Ottoman Empire were not similar. Russia wanted to imitate Europe in both their culture, and in the military, but they wanted to conquer the Ottoman Empire.

History:

Russia

• Declared independence from Mongols in 1480
• The City of Moscow becomes the Third Rome in 16th Century
• Became far behind Europe because of Mongol occupation.
• Ivan III created a strong centralized government based off of Byzantium models.
• Ivan IV (Ivan the Terrible) - many issues during rule:
  • Used terror and cruelty to subdue civilian populations
  • Issues could have been caused by health issues. Ivan was mentally unstable because he watched his dad be murdered.
• Peter I (Peter the Great):
  • Put many reforms into action:
    • Military Reform
    • Political Reform
    • Economic Reform
  • Large push towards Western culture and life styles
• Westernization caused a whole new life for Russians
  • Westernization included the arts, sciences, and ideas
  • Education dramatically changed. First secular education systems in Russia
  • Ideas of enlightenment introduced
  • "Intelligista" - a whole new unofficial social class of intellectuals

Europe:

• Protestant Reformation in early 1500's
  • Luther attacks sales of indulgences with his book
  • Extremely popular response with public
  • Mid 16th century: half the German people adopted Lutheran Christianity
• Social and political developments in western Europe
• Catholic Reformation
  • Council of Trent
• Religious Wars
  • 30 years war: Devastated holy Roman Empire. 1/3 of population lost
• Capitalism gains popularity
  • based off of the "supply-demand" factor and joint-stock companies
• Many advances in the Sciences
  • Ptolemaic Universe:
    • everything revolves around Earth
  • Copernican Universe
    • Sun at center of universe
• Scientific Revolution
  • Galileo
    • Laws of Falling bodies anticipated the law of inertia
  • Newton
    • gave mathematical reasonings of the laws that governed moving objects
    • invented calculus

Ottoman Empire:

• Founded in 1289 by Osman Bey
• Expanded into Byzantine Empire throgh the use of gunpowder and Janissaries
• Foreign cultural innovations viewed as a threat to political stability
• Constantinople conquered in 1453
  • Becomes Istanbul - capital of Byzantine Empire
• Food Crops was the basis of this empire
  • Major crops were wheat and rice
  • Ottomans impacted very little from American crops
  • Crops did not result in rapid population growth like rest of world
    • this only occurred in India
• Long distance trade very important
  • Ottoman empire shared segments of east-west trading routes
• Ottomans fell behind in technology due to the resistance of innovations like the telescope and compass
  • even resisted the printing press
• Ottoman development

Interactions:

Europe:

• Russia was behind on technology due to being controled by the Mongols
• The Russians wanted to emulate the Western European society but somtimes would shut itself of when the tsars rule is in danger
• Copyed the Europeans calture, military, sceince
• Rulers often made trips to Europe
• Russia always one step behind

Ottoman Empire

• Where Russia was open Ottomans were closed
• Russians acquired their religion from Byzantium
• Wished to expand into this land
• Russians and Ottomans even in technological advances

Good work, needed links though. By Richard B.
Fantastic work , loads of info. Need more links. Skyler D.